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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. rest — a break
  3. spring — a coil
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. drill — a practice
  6. drill — army training
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. swing — to play on
  9. tear — to rip
  10. spring — of water
  11. bear — the animal
  12. tear — from crying
  13. game — a match
  14. rest — what's left
  15. club — for golf
  16. tear — from crying
  17. drill — the tool
  18. club — for dancing
  19. bear — the animal
  20. rest — what's left
  21. game — wild animals
  22. spring — the season
  23. swing — in golf
  24. club — a group

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com